Dry-pipe-valve-accelerating device



Oct. 6, 1925. 1,556,382

E. TYDEN DRY PIPE VALVE ACCELERA'IING DEVICE Filed Aug.. 25. 1923 Patented Oct. 6, 1925.

7 T J Tynan, en mswammmoxs;

' p I D mi nms'vmcommatme j nnvr oiaf 7 Application filed nu list as, 19 2'3-. 'sei1a1' no. 659,333. I, I i

Be itknown that I, EMIL TYDEN,"a"citizen of the'United-States, and resident of Evanston, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Dry-Pipe-Valve- Accelerating Devices, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying draw ngs, form ng a part thereof. 1

The purpose of this invention isto pro vide for an improved construction ina dry pipe sprinkler'system' for accelerating the opening of the dry pipe main valve upon the opening of a-sprinkler head, with a specific, -.purpose of preventing theiopening of the main valve upon the occurrence of a" negliglg ble leakage in mean system; amounting 'to'i less than would occur through a sprinkler head opening. 'Itconsists inthe elements andfeatures ofcjonstruction shown and deure l. ,7; n c

I In the structureshown :in' the: drawing,- a is the dry pipes-valve casing, B the-,wateri.

scribed as indicated in the claims;

In the drawings: t a Y -Figure 1' is a front elevation ofthe dry pipe main valve ca'sing and connected water andair pipes, equipped with devices eIn-j bodying. this invention, the casmg being partly broken-away at'the side at which the handrliole'is located, and shownin sec-' tion radial with respect gto'the main" valve for disclosing the interseatl chamber, here-"- the atmospheric presinafter referred to as sure "chamber,

-:Figure- 2 s an enlarged sectional view of the 'interseat chamber' as shown in Figure 1, U Figure 3 is a vertical section taken a's -in- (heated at line 3+3on Figure 2.

Figure 4 is an enlarged" verti inlead pipe, O the pipe leading tothe sprinkler system Which, in-the normal conoperating ab we the valve 'D, over th'eglarger area: defined by the outer seatv A", as compared with thevarea defined; by the inner seat v I cal section of the sylphons' iandl their connections} viewed fromthesamezdirection as in Fig-1 I A, over which thewaterpressure operin the main which may reach 100 "lbs". when, I sprinkler-"head is opened, causing reducv tlon of the super-atmospheric pressure in the system, which; eventually results in the dry pipe main valve D being opened by the water pressure and the water thereby being sentto the open sprinklenhead, it is'desir-1 able that the "opening" ofthe valve should be delayed as little as possibleafterfthef 70 of air pressure in the, system beginsjbut' sprinkler head is opened and therediiction when only a single sprinkler head is opened by the fire, it may require a very appreciable length of" time fortheairv pressure tobe reduced so as topermit th'e dry pipe main valve to open. The purpose of'the present invention is to cause theamount of reduc 1 tion of air pressure in the system 'which I will be exper enced almost instantly. upon" the openingof a single sprinkler head, to resultin overcoming the 'difierential pressure upon'the'upper side of the-valvewhich holds it seated, so that the valve willopen' almostlinstantly upon the opening offthe sprinkler head. This is effected-by means of devices which are sensitive tothe slight reduction of pressure which occurs almost instantly upon the opening of the sprinklerhead, and which, responding to thatslight reduction," operate to open communication from-the reglon of air pressure above the dryplpe'main valve,to'the interseat or at:

mospheric pressure chamber below l-that These devices are designedfwith a 95 duction of pressure which follows the open;- ing of a single sprinkler head, while not;

valve. view to responding, as indicated, to the reresponding to thellessj reduction of pressure which i may result from 'r'ninor'" negligibleleakagesin the t 'The'd'ryipipe main valve, D, has which? is zclosd a downwardly seating valve;a,l"said port leading from the region" of; air pressure above the 1 dry {pipe main valve to the interseat or atmospheric pressure chamber, -a, 'belowthatvalve; The interseat p apt.

chamber, a,"has a drainage port, a, at the;

bottom in "vertical I alignment with theport",

a, and f valve, a". The v-al've, B, which controls its draina'geport seatslat the lower end of'risaidfiport," being'car ried on a stem actuated, as hereinafter described, and" having that stem extending up through the drainage, port and long enough to encounter and thrust upwardly from its seat the valve, a, by the time the drainage valve, B reaches its seat.

A branched pipe fitting, G, connected atany convenient point into pipe, C, carries at its two branch extremities. respectively, similar bellows-like elastically expansible and contractible devices of the character commonly known as sylphons, hereinafter so referred to as sylphons, H and J, which are ultimately equally expanded by the air pressure admitted to them through unequally restricted ports, it and j, formed in the disks, k and y' interposed at their respective. connections with the fitting, G; Upon reduction of the pressure. in the pipe, C, to

the amount which will result from opening of a single sprinkler, the sylphon, H, having the larger port of communication with the air pressure, will experience the reduction instantly while the "sylphon, J, having a much more restricted port of communication, will be relieved very slowly and not appreciably before the sylphon, H, has, collapsed enough for operating the connected devices. about to be, described.

Upon the upwardly projecting stems, H and J of the sylphons, J and H, there is mounted. pivotally with respect to. both sylphons, a lever K, the pivotal connection with the; sylphon, H, being slotted for ac commodating the movement of the lever, K,

rocking about its, pivot to the stem of the other sylphon, J.

On a stud, A jutting horizontally from the dry pipe valve casing, A, there is: mounted aneccentric cam, E, provided with a spring, F, connected at one end with the cam and at, the other end with the support of the, latter. Pivoted on the valve casing,

A, by means of. a rock-shaft, L is a latch,

L, which engages. a notch, e, in the hub of the cam, E, for locking the cam at a position at which the spring, F, is tensioned toa. desired degree and at which one end of a lever, T, which is fulcrumed on the valve casing, A, and at the other end connected with the stem, b, of the drainage valve, B7, is, incontact with the periphery of the, cam at the point of least radius of the latter. An arm, K of the lever, K, depends alongside the latch, L, and has an abutment, which is in touch laterally with the latch atthe. normal position of said lever, K,-i. e-., when the 'sylphon, is collapsed before the collapse of thesylphon, J, occurs. The rocking' of the lever, K, causes it to swing its arm, K sidewise, and causes the abutment, 70 acting against the up-standing arm, L of the: rock shaft, L to actuate. the latch the direction for disengaging it from the cam, E, and the cam being thereupon actuated by its spring for rocking it over its:

fulcrum, actuates the lever, T, in the, direction for thrusting up the drainage valve, B to its seat, and in that movement by means of the interiorly extending stem of the drainage valve, thrusting the valve, a, open and admitting the pressure from above the dry pipe main valve into the atmospheric pressure or interseat chamber, a, whose atmospheric communications through the drainage port is. closed by the same movement,

It will be understood in the foregoing description that the operation of the structure described is designed to be that upon reduction of the pressure, in the air pressure region which results from opening of. a. single Sprinkler head, the unequal collapse of the sylphons which occurs instantly, causes the opening of the valve, a and admission of the air pressure from above the; valve to the chamber below the valve, overcoming the differential by which the Valve has been held seated, causing it to be opened by the. water pressure, which is the result desired.

In resetting the entire. structure, the; operator can hold the drainage valve, B7,, seat. ed for any purpose for which it may be desirable the setrup: to have the chamber, a, closed and filled with waterup to the instant; of; initially seating the dry pipe mam valve, simultaneously with which the cperator will release the drainage valve, B7, permitting the interseat chamber to drain and the op erator will then manually rock the cam, E, over to position for engagement by its latch, L, Both sylphons, in the meantime, within a few seconds after having operated as above described, for releasing the camlatch, will have become equally inflated, and in the introduction of air pressure to. the, system in. the set-up, they will: expand equally and thereby cause the abutment, 70 on the, leverarm, K to move up alongside the latch without operating it for disengaging it from the cam.

A drainage spout, P, is desirably applied around; the drainage port, a connected with a drain pipe, P The downwardly extending stem of the drainage valve, B1 extends through an aperture in the lower side of this: spout without causing any unobjectionable leakage during the drainage.

I claim:

1. In a dry pipe sprinkler system, in combination with a dry pipe main valve, constructed for exposing different areas to the water and air pressures respectively, at its opposite sides, and having forthat purpose, at the water inlet side, a chamber in which the pressure is normally substantially atmospheric; a port. through the. drp pipe main valve for communicating from the. air pressure region, beyond said valve to said atmospheric pressure chamber, a valve con trolling said port; means in the. atmospheric pressure chamber for opening said valve; an

. expansible and reducible chamber device .ex-

4 said different areas, and connections from said device for actuating said valve opening means.

' 2. In the construction defined in claim 1, foregoing, the atmospheric pressure chamber having a drainage port, the valve opening means comprising a thrust member which extends in through said drainage port, and which is exposed outside said chamber for actuation in its valve opening movement.

3. In the construction defined in claim 1,

foregoing, the atmospheric pressure chamber having an aperture opposite the port through the main valve,'the valve opening means comprising a thrust member which extends from outside the dry pipe valve casing in through said aperture, said thrust member being exteriorly exposed for actuation in its valve opening movement, and

carrying a valve element, which, at the limit of its valveopening thrust, seats at the outer side of the aperture through which the thrust member extends.

4. In the construction defined in claim 1, foregoing, the connections from the expansible and reducible'chamber device for actuating valve opening means, comprising a cam which is rotated by the movement of a moving wall of said chamber; a lever fulcrumed outside the dry pipe valve casing, having one end positioned for actuation by the rotation of the cam, a thrust member extending through the wall of the atmospheric pressure chamber for encounter within said chamber for opening the valve at the port through the dry pi e main valve and at its outer end, exposed or actuation by the other end of the lever, said thrust member carrying a valve element which seats at the outer side of the aperture through which said thrust member extends in the atmospheric pressure chamber.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Chicago, Illinois, this 16th day of August, 1923.

EMIL TYDEN. 

